Using his project as an example, Buterin said that capacity on the Ethereum network was nearing its maximum, and that continued new users would push up fees.

“Scalability is a big bottleneck because the Ethereum blockchain is almost full. If you’re a bigger organization, the calculus is that if we join, it will not only be more full but we will be competing with everyone for transaction space,” he told the publication.

“It’s already expensive and it will be even five times more expensive because of us. There is pressure keeping people from joining, but improvements in scalability can do a lot in improving that.”

Ethereum is on the cusp of major improvements precisely with the aim of preparing it for an influx of users with various goals beyond simply sending funds.

Wertheimer Slams Ethereum for Role In ICO Craze

Asked whether security would suffer as a result of such changes, he replied any sacrifice would be “fairly modest.”

“Scaleability is not the only problem. There are still challenges with usability, with account security and with privacy that are improving,” he added.

Recent drops in the value of Ethereum’s native token Ether 00 have nonetheless compounded its publicity issues, particularly in the eyes of major Bitcoin advocates.

ETH/BTC currently trades at 0.018 BTC, the pair’s lowest level since March 2017. Compared with when the market was booming in late 2017 thanks to the ICO phenomenon, a huge amount of value has evaporated.

This, according to developer Udi Wertheimer, is unforgivable.

“It’s time for the ETH gang to wake up, smell the ashes, and take some responsibility,” he wrote in a series of strongly-worded tweets over the weekend.